


The Ease of Forgiveness

by malaleen



Series: Heart To Heart Conversations [5]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-03
Updated: 2013-01-12
Packaged: 2017-11-23 13:33:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/622730
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/malaleen/pseuds/malaleen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Forgiveness is never easy, especially after someone has held you hostage with your mother to make you believe in a curse. But Emma now understands what lengths a parent will go through to be wither their child, and wants to make amends with Jefferson.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This little story is the fifth and last in a short series I've written about Emma. I've also split this story into multiple chapters, as I have a lot of information I'd like to cover in this story as well. While you don't need to read the prior stories to read this one, it's a bit more background into how I view Emma after returning to Storybrooke.
> 
> Please know these characters are not mine, and I just enjoy playing around with them.

The Saturday morning started much like any other. Emma awoke to the scent of breakfast being made by Snow, and the faint sounds of morning cartoons Henry and David liked to watch in their pajamas. She rolled out of bed, pulling her hair out of the ponytail she had put it up in the night before, and quickly used her fingers to comb out her hair. She walked out the bedroom to see Snow at the stove scrambling some eggs, a plate of toast and bacon were already sitting on the counter ready to be served. Emma walked over to her, grabbing her coffee cup to fill it so she could function properly. 

“Good morning,” Snow greeted cheerfully, looking up from her breakfast duties. “Did you sleep well?”

“Not too bad,” Emma replied. After that first night with Henry, Emma and David had gone down to the local furniture store to pick up a twin bed for Henry. They managed to fit it into her bedroom after a bit of strategic re-arranging, but for now, she and Henry had their own place to sleep again. When Snow and David moved to their own place, Emma was planning to take over Snow’s loft bedroom, and Henry would keep her old one for himself.

“Morning, mom!” Henry said, as he took a seat at the counter. “What’s the plan for today?”

“How about we eat first before we decide anything?” Snow suggested, moving around David as he came to grab his own cup of coffee. “Let’s sit down at the table and eat.”

They all moved to the table, all of them seeking out a particular chair. Ever since returning from the Enchanted Forest, Snow had insisted on cooking nearly every meal for her family, and they had all settled into a familiar routine. Snow and David would sit on the ends of the table, with Emma and Henry sitting on either side across from each other. It was a small thing really, but for Emma, it was a family ritual she had never experienced before and it felt nice.

“Everybody dig in,” David said, reaching for the platter of eggs Snow had made. “Honey, everything looks delicious.”

“Mmmm,” Henry agreed, his mouth already full of jam covered toast. David served him some eggs, before passing the dish onto Emma. The little family continued with their meal, and the only sounds for the next several minutes where the sounds of utensils clinking on plates. But all too soon, Henry again asked, “So what are we doing today?”

Emma sat back in her chair. “I—uh—sort of need to visit someone,” she said nervously, trying not to look at Snow.

Snow gave her a suspicious look. It was amazing that even though she and Emma had known they were mother and daughter for a few short weeks, Snow could completely see through Emma. “Who do you need to see? We’ve met with everyone at Granny’s the other night.”

“I—I need to go visit Jefferson,” Emma mumbled, focusing on her breakfast in front of her.

“WHAT!” David yelled, dropping his fork onto the table. “Why in the world do you need to see that man?”

“Emma, I have to agree,” Snow chimed in. “After what he did to us…why on earth do you need to see him again?”

“What did he do?” David demanded, looking at both Snow and Emma. “If he hurt the two of you, I’ll—“

“You’ll do nothing,” Emma interrupted, looking defiant. “And Snow, I need to see him because I need to apologize. He tried to make me believe in the curse, and I refused to see what was right in front of me. He only wanted his daughter back, and I thought he was crazy!”

“Emma!” Snow cried, placing her hand on Emma’s arm. “That doesn’t mean you need to go see him.”

“Yes, it does!” Emma said stubbornly, giving both Snow and David hard looks.

Through all the arguments, Henry was watching everyone quietly as he continued to eat his breakfast. He looked at Emma and calmly asked, “Can I go too?”

“What?” Emma said, looking at Henry in surprise. “Why do you want to come with me?”

“Well,” Henry drawled, looking at everyone sitting at the table. “First of all, Grace is a friend of mine, and I’d like to show her the new Iphone you and mom got me.” He pulled out his white cell phone showing it to everyone once again. “And two, Jefferson is cool. He’s the Mad Hatter after all.”

“How do you know Jefferson?” David demanded, looking sternly at Henry.

“I—uh—sort of talked to him the day I visited my other mom’s vault?” Henry tentatively responded, averting his eyes back to his plate and began eating again.

“What the hell!?” Emma sputtered, looking at her son in disbelief.

“That’s how you knew about the vault?” David asked, looking intently at Henry as he squirmed in his chair. 

“Anyway, can I please come with you to visit Jefferson?” Henry asked, giving Emma a pleading look.

“I don’t know, kid,” Emma responded. “Apparently there are a few things you and I should discuss first.”

“Mom!” Henry pleaded. “Jefferson didn’t tell me to go down to the vault. And I was the one to convince him to go find Grace.”

“What do you mean?” Snow asked. She had been silent for most of the conversation, but was interested to learn about a favorite student of hers reuniting with her family.

“He was scared to find her,” Henry explained, turning to Snow. “He was afraid she would be angry with him for leaving to go with the Evil Queen to Wonderland and getting stranded.” Henry had developed a habit of calling Regina the Evil Queen when talking about her past deeds, but calling her his other mom in the present tense. “Grace is really happy now she’s back with her dad, just like I am to have you back mom.”

Emma was silent for a few moments. “Well, I don’t even know if Jefferson will be home with Grace, but I suppose if they’re there, you can come with me, as long as Jefferson doesn’t care.”

“Yes!” Henry exclaimed, and then began finishing up his breakfast. “I call the shower first!”

Emma just shook her head as she continued eating herself, ignoring the concerned looks her parents were giving her. She and David washed and dried the dishes, as Snow cleaned the table and counter tops of the kitchen, while Henry was in the bathroom. Finishing the last dish, Emma stepped back and reached for her cell phone. “I guess I’ll call Jefferson, now.”

Pulling up her address screen, she found the number she was looking for and pressed it. “Hello?” came a male voice over the phone.

“Uh, Jefferson?” Emma tentatively asked, walking towards her bedroom to talk in private.

“Emma, is that you?” Jefferson said, sounding surprised to hear from her. “Can I help you with anything?”

“I—uh—I was wondering if Henry and I could stop by later today?” she said, sitting down on her bed and picking at the comforter. “Will you be home?”

“Grace and I don’t have any plans to go anywhere,” he replied, still sounding confused. “Not to be rude, Emma, but why do you want to see me?”

“Henry wants to visit Grace,” she stammered, uncomfortable at his blunt question. “And I—I’d just need to talk with you.”

“Alright, Emma,” Jefferson calmly responded. “When where you planning to stop by?”

“Uh, what time is good for you?” she asked nervously.

“Grace and I have just finished breakfast together, but our schedule for the day is wide open,” he replied.

“Well, Henry’s nearly ready,” Emma said, looking at the clock near her bed. “But I need to still get ready. Would an hour or so be okay for us?”

“Would you like to stay for lunch?” Jefferson asked politely.

Emma was silent for a long moment. She wasn’t really keen on eating with Jefferson after the tea incident, but knew Henry would want to stay for a while, and she had no idea how long her talk with Jefferson would last.  
“Emma, I promise I won’t tamper with the food,” Jefferson said in a patient tone. 

“I—uh—sure. We can stay for lunch,” she said, trying to ignore the nervous feeling in her stomach. “I—I’ll see you in an hour or so. Bye!” And with that, she disconnected the call. 

Henry burst into the room, fully dressed but with a wet head. “Did you call him yet?”

“Uh, yeah,” she replied, looking off into space. “I need to get ready, but we’re going in an hour. He’s invited us for lunch.”

“Yes!” Henry exclaimed, running out of the room. “I can’t wait to show Grace my new phone!”

Emma shook her head, and walked over to her closet to pick out something to wear. It was time for her to select her armor to visit the Mad Hatter.

* * *

Jefferson sat at a stool in his immaculate kitchen staring at the phone receiver in his hand. He had been cleaning up from the breakfast he and Grace had shared when Emma had called. He couldn’t believe she even wanted to see him again after all he had done to her and her family. After all, holding a mother and daughter hostage at gunpoint isn’t really a good start to a friendship. Yet Emma still wanted to see him about something.

“Papa?” 

Jefferson turned to see Grace standing next to him. She had only been living with him again for little over a week, but to Jefferson, it felt like she had never left. This empty old mansion of his was finally starting to feel like a home. “Grace, we’re having some visitors in a little bit.”

“Who’s visiting, Papa?” she asked, looking up at him curiously. She looked so much like her mother when she looked at him like that.

“Sheriff Swan and her son Henry,” he said, giving her a bright smile. “She’s agreed to stay for lunch, so what should we have, sweetheart?”

“Henry’s coming to visit?” Grace asked, completely ignoring the fact his mother was joining him. “Can we order pizza, Poppa?”

Jefferson thought about it for a moment. Actually, ordering out might not be such a bad idea after all, considering what had happened last time he had prepared food for Emma. Having food delivered was probably the best option if he wanted her to actually eat food he gave her. “That sounds like a perfect idea, Grace. We’ll wait until Emma and Henry are here before we order. Now why don’t you go check around the house to see if all your toys are put away properly for our guests?”

Grace nodded eagerly and rushed from the room. She was actually a very tidy child, but he could tell she wanted to make sure everything was perfect for their guests. Jefferson stood and began walking towards the living room of the home. He and Grace had started to redecorate the mansion to better suit their tastes. Now that the curse had been broken, he was no longer forced to live with the retched Wonderland-inspired decorations Regina has forced on him. They were a long way from being finished, but different touches in some of the regularly used rooms were starting to show the difference.

He happened to glance in a mirror hanging in the hallway. He wasn’t wearing his scarf or cravat like he usually did, as he had explained to Grace about his scar on his neck shortly after bringing her back home. He had glossed over many of the gory details of what had happened in Wonderland by saying he had been injured by the Queen of Hearts, but he was grateful Grace didn’t yet understand what that meant. He could only hope that Henry wouldn’t say anything to Grace today, as he was certain the boy knew full well what he had went through thanks to Regina because of his book. 

Changing direction, Jefferson walked towards the stairs to go up to his bedroom to grab a scarf. Just because he was now comfortable enough to go without one in his daughter’s presence, didn’t mean he wanted Emma or Henry staring at the scar on his neck. It was time for him to prepare himself and Grace for a visit that would no doubt be unpleasant for him after his past actions.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I honestly don't know how many chapters this story will run. I suspect it will be only 4 chapters, but it could be more, or it could be less. However, I do have a very clear plan for how this story is to go and what needs to happen.

Emma drove up to the large mansion on the hill, stopping her Bug near the steps leading up the doorway. She closed her eyes briefly, forcing herself not to recall the last time she had been to this house.

“WOW!” Henry exclaimed, looking up at the mansion with awe. “This is where Grace is living now? How cool is that?” He opened the car door and quickly got out. Emma followed behind him, not quite as eager to visit as he was.

Suddenly the front door flew open and a small girl came running out and down the stairs towards Henry and Emma. “Henry, you made it!”

“Grace, your house is so cool!” Henry said, looking around excitedly. “What’s your backyard look like?”

“It’s so awesome! You should see what my Papa had built for me! Come and see,” she said, tugging on his arm to pull him around to show him.

Suddenly, Emma heard a throat clearing. She looked up to see Jefferson standing just outside the front door, looking down at Grace and Henry with a bemused smile. “Grace, darling, shouldn’t you say hello to the Sheriff as well before you go dragging her son away?”

Grace dropped Henry’s arm and blushed. She looked sheepishly at Emma, and said, “I’m sorry Sheriff Swan. How are you today?”

Emma smiled down at the little girl. “Call me Emma, and I’m fine, Grace. Henry and I are glad you and your dad allowed us to visit today.”

Grace smiled at Emma brightly then turned to look at her dad. “Papa, can I please show Henry the backyard now?”

“Not until you put on a jacket and cap, young lady,” Jefferson admonished. Grace rushed back up the stairs towards the house, throwing out a careless “wait a moment” at Henry. Jefferson smiled at Emma then at his daughter as she ran back out of the house dressed for the outdoors, letting the front door shut with a bang. He and Emma watched as the two children ran off together.

“So you renovated your back yard?” Emma asked casually. She was very uncomfortable about bringing up the subject of her last visit, but really didn’t know what to say to him.

“Emma, it’s okay,” Jefferson said, walking slowly down the stairs to join her. “I had a few things installed for Grace after you broke the curse. Would you like to go see?”

“Sure,” Emma said, falling into step next to him as they began to follow the children’s voices coming from the back yard. As they reached the children, Emma could see a large child’s play set erected in the yard, along with a large and very girlish playhouse. Henry and Grace were already on the play set, laughing and talking loudly with each other.

“Quite a change from last time, I suppose,” Jefferson said from beside her.

“Yes, it is,” she agreed, watching the two children play. It felt strangely normal to be standing next to this man watching their two children play with each other.

“Would you like to go inside the house, Emma?” Jefferson asked, turning to her. “Unlike those two kids, I don’t quite fancy running about in the cold.” 

“Okay,” Emma agreed, and began to follow him towards the house. Instead of walking back to the front entrance, he led her up a short set of stairs to a patio and a set of French doors. He opened one for Emma, gesturing for her to go inside. She walked into a quaint breakfast area attached to the kitchen. She looked around at the very impressive and modern décor. “Nice.”

“Thank you,” Jefferson said, shutting the door behind him. He turned to Emma and politely asked, “Can I take your coat?”

Emma took a deep breath and took off her brown leather jacket, handing it to him. She watched as he walked away to put away the coat, and she took a long look at her surroundings once again. She could see it was a very nice space, but it still didn’t feel lived in like a house should. 

Jefferson returned a moment later. “Would you like some tea or coffee?” Emma just looked at him, raising an eyebrow at his offer. “I promise I won’t tamper with it in anyway. You can even watch me make it, or better yet, help me make it.”

“Why not?” Emma said, deciding that this was an easy way to show her attempt at trusting Jefferson. 

He smiled brightly at her. “So which would you prefer?”

“Well, I’m more of a coffee gal myself,” she admitted, following him further into the kitchen.

“Coffee it is,” he said, reaching into the refrigerator for a canister of coffee beans. For the next few minutes, he and Emma worked together to set up the coffee maker, which a hell of a lot fancier than the one she and Snow had at the loft.

After the coffee had brewed, Jefferson poured each of them a cup. “Do you want cream or sugar?” He asked, reaching into the refrigerator again to pull both out.

“No, I’m fine,” Emma replied, taking a tentative sip. “It’s good.” 

“Thank you,” he said, smiling again at her. “I’m afraid I drink my coffee with both. I’m more of a tea drinker myself.”

Emma said nothing at that remark, remembering all too well the stories she had read about Alice in Wonderland as a child, as well as Henry’s book. She followed Jefferson to sit at the table, where they could still watch their two children play while they enjoyed their coffee.

She and Jefferson sat in silence for several long minutes, before he put down his cup. “Emma, you wanted to speak with me?”

She set down her cup as well and took a deep breath. This was not going to be easy, as she was not in the habit of apologizing to people. “Jefferson, I wanted to say I’m sorry for not believing you about the curse.”

“Emma—“

“No,” she said firmly. “While I don’t agree with your methods of trying to convince me, you were right about everything. I did need to open my eyes to the truth around me.” She looked down at her cup, playing with the handle. “I could have avoided so much if I’d only listened to you…listened to Henry, August, Graham…the list goes on and on.”

“Emma…what I did to you and your mother was unforgivable,” Jefferson said firmly. “I was crazed that night. I honestly thought you would come back and arrest me after everything with Mary Margaret was over.”

Emma laughed hollowly. “Believe me, I thought about it.”

“Well, can I just say I’m glad you didn’t?” He offered.

Emma was silent for a moment, and then looked at him again. “I’m glad you found your daughter, Jefferson.”

“Thank you,” he said sincerely, gazing back at her intently. “But I really should thank your son. If it wasn’t for him, I might have never worked up the courage to find her. I’m afraid I was too much of a coward to seek her out after the curse was broken until he convinced me how important it was to see her again.” Jefferson looked at her intently. “He really missed you.”

“I know he did,” Emma admitted, staring out the window to watch Henry and Grace run around. “When we were separated by the wraith, I finally started to understand just a bit of what you must have went through all these years.”

“Emma,“ Jefferson said softly.

“No,” she said firmly, looking at him. “I was only separated from Henry for only a few weeks, and Snow and I were always looking for a way back home. But you—“ She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to verbalize her thoughts. “You were forced to leave your daughter for God knows how long in Wonderland, all the while being tortured into madness. And then you get pulled here to Storybrooke only to be cursed again and forced to watch your daughter live her life without you and still remembered everything.”

Jefferson looked at her with amazement. For some strange reason, this woman was able to understand a bit of his suffering the past several decades. “I-I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t need to say anything,” Emma assured, reaching across the table to place her hand on his. “I nearly went mad those few weeks away from Henry and to think of what you suffered? I can’t imagine. And what you must have endured in Wonderland. I’m amazed you’re as sane as you are.”

“Don’t be fooled by my apparent sanity,” Jefferson warned, giving Emma a hard look, pulling away from her. “I may seem alright at the moment, but you’ve seen my more manic side.” Jefferson stood up and walked towards the French door to watch Grace and Henry, and continued in a sad tone. “I’ve tried to hide my past and my madness from Grace, but I’m not always successful. Do you know how hard it was for me to try to explain my scar from being beheaded by the Queen of Hearts?”

Emma drew in a deep breath. “I can’t even…”

“No,” he laughed harshly, looking away from the window and Emma. “I’m fairly sure you can’t.”

“What you must have went through…” Emma trailed off, thinking more out loud to herself. “And I thought I had it bad dealing with ogres, Captain Hook and Cora.”

“Cora!” Jefferson barked, turning to face Emma. “What do you mean, you dealt with Cora?”

“She had taken over the refugee camp in the Enchanted Forest. Actually, she killed its leader Lancelot and all of its inhabitants except Mulan, Aurora and Hook. I don’t know if anyone else is alive still in the Enchanted Forest to be honest.”

“Cora was in the Enchanted Forest with you?” Jefferson demanded, walking over Emma and pulling her out of her chair, keeping his hands secured on her shoulders.

“Jefferson, what are you doing?” Emma stammered, starting to fear the manic look creeping into his face. “Cora is back in the Enchanted Forest with Hook. She wanted to cross over to this world instead of us, but we managed to defeat her. I managed to defeat her.”

“Cora was trying to get to Storybrooke?” Jefferson repeated, growing more crazed by the second, giving Emma a little shake. 

“Jefferson!” Emma shouted, placing her hands on his chest and pushing him back from her. “What the hell is going on?”

Jefferson just started laughing in a crazed manner. “The Queen of Hearts was trying to cross realms.”

“What are you saying,” Emma demanded, this time it was her grabbing Jefferson by the shoulders and giving him a shake. “Are you saying Cora was the Queen of Hearts?”

“Off with his head!” Jefferson mocked, starting to rock back and forth on his heels. 

Emma, panicking over the revelation and Jefferson’s actions, did something she never would have normally ever considered. She pulled Jefferson into her arms, hugging him tightly, and began to comfort the clearly crazed man. “She’s not here,” she murmured, whispering desperately in his ear. “I stopped her.”

“You stopped her,” Jefferson repeated in a whisper, gradually relaxing into Emma’s arms. Slowly, she turned the two of them around and lowered him into her chair. Kneeling in front of the chair, she tried to get his attention.

“Jefferson, you need to snap out of it. Grace and Henry will be coming in soon and you don’t want them to see you like this, do you?” She implored, rubbing his hands that were slack on his knees.

He closed his eyes for several seconds and then began to stand. “If you will excuse me, Emma.” He then walked out of the kitchen, leaving Emma to stare after him, not knowing if she should follow, or wait for him to return.


	3. Chapter 3

Henry and Grace sat together on the higher platform on the play set, swinging their legs off the edge. It really was an impressive sight, made from cedar and featured swings, a trapeze bar and two platforms of various heights, which the highest one had a slide coming off the side of it. Henry looked around, wishing he still had his castle which had become his spot with his mom, Emma.

“This is really cool, Grace,” he said sincerely. “I can’t wait to see the rest of your home. I bet it’s fantastic to live in a house like this.”

“You live in the Mayor’s house, don’t you? I’m sure that’s similar to this one,” Grace asked, looking over at him.

“I think your house is bigger. And it looks like it might have some really cool spots to explore,” he said, looking up at the mansion. “Have you found any secret rooms or passages?”

“No,” Grace replied slowly, a frown forming on her face.

“What is it?” Henry asked, picking up on her distress.

“It’s just…” she began, looking unsure of what to say. “This house kind of weird. I mean, I can tell papa worked hard to make it perfect for me, especially my room, but some of the other rooms give me the creeps.”

“Oh,” Henry said. “What’s so strange about it?”

“Well, there are a lot of things about Wonderland all over the place,” she answered with a frown. “I know papa tried to remove a lot of them since I came to live with him, but some of them are still around.” She was quiet for a long moment as she turned away from Henry and looked off into the distance. “I wish I knew what happened to my papa in Wonderland.”

“What did your dad tell you?” Henry asked cautiously, not sure what to say to Grace. He knew exactly what Jefferson had gone through thanks to his story book. 

“He said he couldn’t leave Wonderland because your mom…I mean the Evil Queen…I—“ Grace tried to explain, a desperate look crossing her face. 

Henry took pity on her and confessed, “I call her the Evil Queen when talking about her actions back in the Enchanted Forest, even for some of the things she did during the curse here in Storybrooke.” He looked at Grace, trying to decide if he should let on he knew her father’s story.

“Do you know what happened to him?” she asked suddenly. 

“Why would I know what happened to your dad?” he replied quickly, feeling like he shouldn’t be sharing Jefferson’s secrets.

“Henry, you talked a lot about the storybook and the curse before the Evil Queen made you see Doctor Hopper… I mean, Jiminy Cricket…wow, that sounds so weird to say out loud,” she laughed, shaking her head at the absolute craziness of the situation.

“Yeah,” Henry agreed. 

“So do you know?” she asked again, an almost pleading look crossing her face.

“Are you sure you want to know?” Henry questioned. “It’s not really a happy one. In fact a lot of the stories in the book are unhappy. It’s only now that we’re starting to see happy endings now that Emma broke the curse.”

“I think I need to know,” she whispered, sounding unsure. “I need to know what happened to my papa.”

“Okay,” Henry responded. “I have my book with me in the car. We can go look at it if you want.”

Grace pulled herself up and held out a hand to Henry. “Let’s go get it and look at it in my room. I’m starting to get cold anyway.”

“Yeah, so am I,” he agreed, taking her hand and allowing her to help pull him up. “We’ll get the book and look up your dad’s story. But I’m not sure you’re going to be happy after you read it.”

Grace started to climb down the play set and said to Henry, “I just need to know.”

“Okay, let’s do this,” he replied, jumping to the ground and leading her to the car.

* * *

Emma stood in the kitchen, wondering just what she should do now. Should she go and find Jefferson, or just wait for his return? Her decision was made for her when she heard a door open and shut. She followed the voices of Henry and Grace to find the two standing near a coat closet in the entry way, talking in a rather suspicious manner. What was even more curious was the backpack slung over Henry’s shoulder, which Emma knew he hadn’t grabbed when he ran off to play with Grace earlier.

“What are you two up to now?” she asked.

“We’re going up to Grace’s room,” Henry said quickly, pulling his pack further up his shoulder. “She wants to show me her room and I’m going to show her my new Iphone.”

“Is that all?” Emma asked pointedly, staring at Henry’s backpack.

“Yup,” he answered, looking away from her and giving Grace a look.

“Let’s go upstairs, Henry,” she said, pulling him down the hall and towards the stairway. 

Emma watched the two kids hurry up the stairs and out of sight. Henry was lying to her. She knew damn well his new phone was in his pocket, and that the only reason he needed that backpack was to have his storybook. Closing her eyes, she realized she needed to find Jefferson and tell him about what their children were most likely doing at the moment.

She walked down the hall, peering into various rooms. She saw that the living room was empty, though looking more lived in than the last time she saw it. Across the hall the door to the hat room was closed, but she had a feeling that was where exactly where Jefferson was hiding. 

She walked up to the door and knocked softly, deciding it might be better to warn Jefferson of her pending arrival. Slowly she started to open the door and called out his name. Sure enough, Jefferson sat at his work bench, his head in his hands.

“Jefferson?” she asked again, slowing walking towards him. For some reason, she didn’t think he would hurt her again, but she wasn’t sure if he was past his previous manic behavior.

“What do you want, Emma?” Jefferson croaked, not looking up at her.

“Henry and Grace came in from the outdoors,” she started, not sure what to say.

“Okay,” he replied, still not looking up at her.

Emma slowly moved closer, taking a moment to look around. The numerous hats along the wall were gone, and all the shelves stood bare. In fact, his table was strangely neat and organized, as if he hadn’t used it in a while. She stood behind him, and continued softly. “They went up to Grace’s room.”

“What aren’t you telling me, Emma?” Jefferson asked, his head still in his hands.

“I think they’re going to look at Henry’s storybook,” she blurt out quickly, stepping back in case Jefferson reacted negatively.

Jefferson was silent for a long moment. “I see.”

“If you want, I’ll call him down right now and we can both leave,” she went on in rush.

“Don’t bother,” he sniffed, rubbing at his face. “I’m sure Grace asked to see it.”

Emma was silent as she watched him slowly straighten himself up. She could see the redness around his eyes, and his wet face. She edged closer again, and placeing a hand on his arm in support. “Are you going to be okay?”

“I-I can’t say I’m surprised Grace wanted to know,” he whispered, looking at Emma sadly. “I just wish I could protect her from learning the truth about who I was and what happened to me.”

Again, Emma was struck the urge to pull this man into her arms. He looked so lost and damaged. Normally she avoided this kind of stuff at all costs, but something within her wanted to make things right for him. Desperately, she decided to change the subject. “Where are all the hats?”

Jefferson closed his eyes. “I threw them all out after I tried to hold you and Snow White hostage. None of them worked anyway.”

Emma knew she shouldn’t ask, but couldn’t help herself. “What happened to you after Snow kicked you out of the window?”

“I fell into the hedge and was unconscious for several hours,” he said flatly, still not looking at her.

“But we didn’t see you anywhere?” she continued, trying to understand what happened that night.

“I landed quite far away from the window,” he replied. “Guess I was lucky I didn’t break my neck after all that.” He gave a bitter laugh. “Had a hell of a concussion, though.”

“I can imagine,” Emma agreed. After all, not only had he been kicked out of a window but she had also bashed him on the head with his telescope. “Are you going to be okay?”

“Not really, but I suppose I’ll just have to deal with it,” he tonelessly answered.

“Do you want me to leave?” She asked again.

“No,” he admitted. “I’d really like you to stay.”

“Then I will,” she said, giving into the urge she had since she walked into the room and saw him looking so despondent. Going over to him, she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close in another hug.  
Jefferson slowly brought up his arms to return her embrace. They stood there for several long minutes, just holding each other quietly. Finally Jefferson said softly against her ear, “I promised you and Henry lunch, and Grace wanted to order pizza. What do you think?”

Emma’s face broke into a smile against his shoulder and pulled herself back but not quite out of his arms to look at him. “Pizza sounds really good right now,” she agreed.

“Any requests for the two of you?” he asked, looking down at her. “I know what I like and what Grace likes.”

“Henry’s a cheese only kid, and I’m pretty much an anything but anchovies kind of girl,” she responded.

“Grace is the same as Henry,” he went on, not letting her go. “And I’m a supreme pizza lover myself.”

“Sounds good for both,” she replied, finally pulling herself out of his arms. “Are you really going to be okay with all this?"

“I think I’ll be okay,” he admitted. “Now that I have you here with me.”

Emma’s eyes widened at his confession. He went on as if he had said nothing out of the ordinary. “Why don’t we go to the kitchen and place the order. By the time it’s delivered, we can have everything set up for lunch and by that time, Grace and Henry will be ready to eat.”

“Okay,” she said, deciding to follow his lead. “Let’s go order some pizza.”


	4. Chapter 4

A half hour later, the pizzas had been ordered and Jefferson, along with Emma’s assistance, had set the kitchen table for the meal. He and Emma argued over his insistence that they should have a salad to eat as well for lunch. His argument was that the children should eat something healthy in addition to the not so healthy choice of pizza, and Emma scoffed at his reasoning, saying that it was more likely the kids would simply ignore the salad and the only people in the house consuming the salad would be her and Jefferson.

It felt oddly domestic to argue with someone else over choices to be made for their children, and Jefferson could hardly let himself get caught up in the feeling. While Emma had definitely reached out to him over the past few hours, he was under no illusion this could be a reoccurring event. She was a princess, the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, and he was the Mad Hatter, a one-time portal jumper and mushroom seller. No matter how much he might enjoy their time together, he knew that they could never be more than casual acquaintances and parents of children who were friends with each other.

The sound of footsteps came from hallway and Jefferson turned to see Grace and Henry standing in the doorway to the kitchen. Grace’s eyes were red from crying, and Henry looked equally upset. Grace looked at him for a long moment, before running to him and throwing her arms around his waist, hugging him close. He wrapped his arms around her, bowing his head to hide his face from Emma and Henry.

“Papa, I am so, so sorry,” she whispered into his chest. “I had no idea.”

“Shhhhh—“ he murmured, trying to comfort his crying child. He heard Emma move from beside him and looked up to see her going to Henry. She gave him an empathic look and mouthed she’d be back soon, and then ushered Henry out of the door with her.

“Grace,” he said, pulling her away from him and leading her to the table. He pulled out a chair and directed her to sit, and then pulled another chair out to sit right in front of her. “So you read about our story in Henry’s book?”

“Oh, papa!” she cried, tears filling her eyes once again. “It was so awful! How can you stand it?”

Jefferson took a shuddering breath. “Grace, I’m going to be completely honest with you. I couldn’t stand it. I did go mad in Wonderland.”

“Are you better now?” she quietly asked, looking at him intently. “Are you okay?”

“For the most part, yes,” he admitted, and was relieved to see her relax in front of him. “But I haven’t always made good decisions in the past, and when you make bad decisions, you need to face the consequences of those decisions at some point. I had to pay dearly for choosing to trust Regina back before the curse, and as a result I was separated from you for decades.” And with that admission, he pulled Grace out of her chair and into his arms once again.

He decided not to mention that he was aware the entire time of the curse of exactly who he was and how he was unable to reunite with her. Someday he would have to address this with her, but today was simply not the day. Grace had learned enough of the past for one day. He only hoped this omission didn’t cause more damage with his relationship with Grace later on. Jefferson was truly sorry for the decisions he had made, ones that had and most likely still will, have far reaching consequences. He knew that someday soon, Emma would learn of his second deal with Regina and his hesitant friendship with her would vanish. However, at his core, he was a selfish man and wanted to enjoy the tentative friendship Emma had offered him while he still could.

The door bell ringing interrupted his moment with Grace. Pulling her away from him, he wiped away her tears and said softly to her, “Why don’t you run to the bathroom to wash up for lunch. I’ll go and get everything ready.”

Grace smiled at him weakly and reached out to hug him quickly once again before running out of the kitchen. Jefferson wiped away the tears from his own eyes, before taking another deep breath. Standing up, he started for the front door, only to be surprised by Emma entering the kitchen carrying the two pizzas. Looking at her, he began, “Emma, you didn’t have to...”

“Jefferson, I got it,” she stopped him, walking past him to set the boxes on the table. “I sent Henry to wash up for lunch, so why don’t you grab the salad you insisted we have and I’ll grab the drinks so we can all eat.”

He just stared at her for a moment, and then walked over to the refrigerator to get the aforementioned salad. He and Emma worked in silence for the next few minutes getting the meal ready before Henry and Grace returned. However, soon the four of them were sitting at the table together, helping themselves to the food. As Emma had predicted, neither child has seemed overly keen to have any salad, but after a gentle admonishment by Jefferson to Grace and a stern look for Henry by Emma, both children found a pile of salad greens on their plates along with their slices of cheese pizza.

The meal was surprisingly light hearted, much in part due to Henry. As he knew of Jefferson’s portal jumping past, he was curious about all the worlds he had visited and once he realized Jefferson was willing to answer his questions, he was asking questions non-stop.

“So, is Hogwarts real?” Henry asked around a mouth full of pizza. “Have you met Harry Potter or Dumbledore?”

“Henry!” Emma admonished, giving him a hard look. “Don’t talk with your mouth full!”

Henry swallowed his pizza and gave an apologetic smile. “Sorry.”

Jefferson just chuckled and put down his own slice. “Yes, I’ve been to that realm before, and no, I haven’t met Harry Potter or Dumbledore. Time in that realm runs fairly concurrent with this one, and at the time I was actively portal jumping, they were in the middle of the first war with Voldemort. I tended to try to just get in and out of that world due to the dangers the world was presenting at the time.”

“You mean all that about Harry Potter was real?” Emma asked incredulously. “But those are just some fantastic stories written by J.K. Rowling.”

Jefferson looked at her with mild amusement. “Emma, I told you before there were many different worlds out there, pressing against one another. And books and stories are written for a reason, you know. In this world where there’s no magic, but some of the more creative souls can sense other worlds through their imaginations, and that’s how the stories begin. Many times, it’s starts as a fantastic idea or dream, but in reality, it’s the other realms reaching out to the individual.”

“That is so cool,” Henry said, gazing at Jefferson in awe. “It explains a lot.”

Jefferson smiled back at him. “It does, doesn’t it?”

Grace had been silent all through Henry’s questions. She looked at her father, then asked innocently, “Can we go to any of these realms, papa?”

Jefferson, Henry, and Emma stilled at the question. Jefferson didn’t have his hat any longer as it had been accidently destroyed by David. He was about to answer her when Emma spoke.

“Grace, your dad no longer has his hat,” she said softly. “After Regina used it to open a portal to get rid of the Wraith, it pulled me into the portal and my mother jumped in after me. My father tried to follow us but accidently destroyed the hat.”

Henry watched Emma in amazement as she explained the hat situation for his friend. Deciding to share what he knew of the situation, he added, “Gramps was really sorry he destroyed the hat, Jefferson. And then his mean adoptive father burned it for revenge after his plan to frame Ruby failed.”

“What!” Jefferson and Emma asked in unison, both turning to look at Henry. 

“My hat was burned?” Jefferson groaned.

“David’s adoptive dad tried to frame Red?” Emma asked. Henry just shrugged and went on eating his pizza. Grace just looked between Emma and Jefferson with interest.

“I guess that means no more visiting other realms for me again. Probably better this way anyway. Magic’s too unpredictable here. I’d probably get stuck in Wonderland again if I tried,” Jefferson said bitterly.

He noticed Emma looking at him with a thoughtful expression on her face. He was about to ask her what was the matter when Grace spoke up. “Papa, can Henry and I be excused?”

He looked over to see both children had eaten several slices of pizza, yet the majority of the salad remained on their plates. “I suppose,” he sighed.

“Henry,” Emma said, stopping the boy before he could run off with Grace once again. “Maybe we should leave now. I’m sure Jefferson and Grace have better things to do than entertain us for the afternoon.”

“Emma,” Grace pleaded, looking at Henry first then Emma. “Henry and I wanted to watch some DVD’s he brought with him.”

“He not only brought his storybook but also DVDs?” Emma asked with raised eyebrow. She turned to Henry. “What were you thinking kid? Got clothes with you too? Are you planning to move in?”

Jefferson started at Emma’s mention of moving in. While it had never crossed his mind to live with another person besides Grace in this house, a sudden image of the four of them filling this house with laughter and happiness flashed through his mind. 

Henry interrupted his brief musing by answering Emma’s questions. “No, but I wanted to watch some Disney versions of the fairytales in my storybook with Grace.”

“What?” Emma asked, surprised by the answer. “And how did you get those, because I know Regina would have never purchased those for you.”

“I-uh might have bought some a while ago using Grams credit card?” he answered tentatively. “And maybe asked Gramps to buy a few more a couple of weeks ago?”

“Kid, we are going to have a long talk about your internet purchasing habits,” Emma sighed. “I guess staying is up to Jefferson.”

Both children turned pleading eyes to him, and he could only laugh. “I don’t have a problem with you staying as long as your mother doesn’t have other plans this afternoon, Henry.”

“We don’t,” Emma answered. “Are you sure?”

He turned to look at her. “Emma, it’s fine. As long as you don’t mind hanging out with me, that is.”

Emma just smiled at him, and turned to look at Henry. “Okay kid, but only for the afternoon. We’re not staying for dinner as Snow will have our heads if we’re not home by six.”

“Awesome!” Henry cheered. “Come on Grace! I have Peter Pan, Sleeping Beauty and Mulan with me. Mom and Grams met Princess Aurora, Mulan, and Captain Hook in the Enchanted Forest and we can compare the real stories of them with the movies.” 

Jefferson laughed as he watched the two of them run off together in the direction of the family room where the entertainment center was located. “I suppose watching the Disney versions of our stories is relatively harmless.”  
Emma just closed her eyes and shook her head. “You know, I still have trouble wrapping my brain around the idea that I’m surrounded by people who are considered by many as just storybook characters.”

“I can imagine it would be difficult,” Jefferson replied sympathetically. “I remember how hard it was to convince you of the truth.”

“It’s hard to deny when you’re faced with a 50 foot fire breathing dragon, ogres, and giants. Let’s get this place cleaned up and the leftover put away.” She gave him an impish look, then said, “Looks like you’re going to be eating salad for a while.”

He laughed heartily at her comment. “I guess you were right after all.”

“Of course I was,” she said smugly and walked towards the table to gather the empty plates. The two of them worked silently for the next several minutes. As they were just finishing the very domestic task of cleaning up after the meal, Emma surprised Jefferson once again.

“Jefferson, what if I told you I think I might be able to help you with your hat now?”


	5. Chapter 5

“Jefferson, what if I told you I think I might be able to help you with your hat now?”

Emma watched as Jefferson’s jaw dropped in surprise at her admission. The possibility fixing his hat had crossed her mind a few times since helping Regina open the portal for the Wraith. Of course, it wasn’t a priority while she was stuck in the Enchanted Forest, but during down times on the journey when she wouldn’t allow herself to think about Henry so she wouldn’t go crazy, she had pondered the idea once or twice.

“What?” Jefferson sputtered, looking at her dumbfounded. “But the hat’s destroyed.”

“Can’t we make a new one?” She countered, giving him an appraising look. “That’s what you wanted me to do in the first place.”

“But that didn’t work,” he retorted.

“True,” she admitted. “But I didn’t believe in all this magic stuff back then. Now that I’ve seen magic happen…helped magic happen, I think I can help you with making a new hat.”

“What do you mean?” he asked, curious as he leaned against the counter top.

“When I touched Henry’s storybook right after he ate the cursed apple turnover was when I had my first true encounter with magic,” she started, looking at Jefferson. A pained expression crossed Jefferson’s face. “What’s wrong?”

Shaking his head, he said, “It’s nothing. Please continue.”

“You probably heard about the second time I experienced magic was when I kissed Henry to wake him from the sleeping curse he was under, and broke the curse on Storybrooke,” she went on, recalling the feeling of magic bursting out of her when her lips touched his forehead. “Later, when Regina was trying to get your hat to work, she couldn’t get it to open the portal until I put my hand on her arm.”

“Go on…” he urged, as he watched her with a curious and hopeful expression. 

“The last time was when we went against Cora for the last time. She was threatening to take Snow’s heart, so I jumped in front of her instead. Cora had her hand on my heart, but she couldn’t remove it and something happened within me as I literally blasted her away from me,” she finished.

“Cora tried to take your heart?” he croaked, looking appalled. “And you managed to blast her away? Emma, do you have any idea what that means?”

“Gold said I was the product of true love,” she confessed.

“Yes, that would explain your power,” Jefferson breathed, moving closer to Emma. She stood there, gazing into his face, waiting for his explanation. “Emma, you have no idea how powerful you are. You’re most likely more powerful than Cora, Regina, and even Rumplestiltskin.”

“Yeah, maybe,” she said skeptically. “But I don’t have any idea how to use it, and there’s no one I can trust to teach me magic anyway.”

“Yes, and magic is unpredictable in this realm anyway,” he mused, thinking out loud. 

“Do you think I can help you with your hat?” Emma asked, honestly wanting to help.

Jefferson looked down at her and smiled. “I guess it can’t hurt to try. Shall we?”

* * *

Emma walked around the hat room, looking at the various items in the room. She glanced over her shoulder to see Jefferson pulling out various fabrics and tools for the hat. “No offense, but the décor in this house is kind of hideous.”

“Yeah, I know,” he chuckled, amused by her observation. “It was like this when I got here twenty eight years ago. Believe me, I’ve tried to get rid of it many times in the beginning, but it kept coming back.”

Emma walked over to the table across from Jefferson. “What do you mean, it came back?”

Jefferson put down the tools he had been holding and looked at her. “Well, I’d throw out some hideous piece of furniture and the next day, it’d be back right where it was before I threw it out. Or I’d try to get rid of some of the wallpaper on the walls or paint over it, and the next morning it would be back to normal. Apparently for some reason, Regina didn’t just feel the need to keep me trapped in this house, but she also wanted me stuck with horrible interior decorating.”

“What cruel and unusual punishment,” Emma smirked.

Jefferson inclined his head at her, “Indeed.”

Emma looked at all the various tools Jefferson had assembled. “So, about how long does it take you to make a hat?”

“A few hours,” he answered, going back to his tools. “About as long as several Disney movies.”

“I’m not going to have to make the hat again?” she asked. “That last hat I made was hideous.”

Jefferson started to laugh as he recalled her last attempt at hat making. “It was pretty ugly.”

“Hey now!” she exclaimed. “It’s not like I’ve made one before, and you were holding me hostage at gun point. You try making a hat under those conditions.”

“Point taken,” Jefferson agreed, not wanting to admit he’d experienced similar treatment in Wonderland. “And no, I don’t think you’ll need to make the hat. From what you’ve told me, it sounds like you’re might be able to infuse an item with magic through touch, so I can make the hat, and later you’ll just…” he waved his hand.

“Ah…okay then,” she said, thinking over what he just said. Suddenly she blurted out something completely random. “Love.”

Jefferson looked at her startled. “What?”

“Love,” she breathed. “My power is there because of true love. When you are making your hat, think of Grace or…” she trailed off.

“Or?” he prompted, curious about where she was going with her train of thought.

“Well,” she said, becoming distinctly uncomfortable with the current topic. “I wasn’t sure about other people you’ve loved, like Grace’s mother.”

“Ah,” he said slowly, looking back down at the work bench and began to gather material for the hat. “I see what you mean.” He was quiet for the next several minutes as he sorted through all the various materials. “So, shall we get started?” And that said he began construction on the hat.

Emma watched him silently for about 15 minutes as she watched him cut the various materials to size with his shears, beginning to form it into a top hat. “This is probably a stupid question considering what happened to you, but do you like making hats?”

Jefferson threw back his head, laughing at Emma’s inane question. Only she would ask the Mad Hatter if he liked making hats. “Actually, it can be rather soothing, to tell the truth. Creating something out of scraps of fabric.” He mused, as he picked up another needed tool. “Of course, I had no idea what the hell I was doing when I was forced to make another magical hat in Wonderland. I’d made clothing for Grace and I when she was growing up in the Enchanted Forest, but I’d never attempted making a hat until then. My first hundred or so attempts were about as good as yours.”

“What was it like living in the Enchanted Forest back then?” Emma asked, curious to hear what his life had been like.

Jefferson stopped for a moment and thought back to that time of his life. “Simple.” He began working again on the hat. “I stopped portal jumping after the death of Grace’s mother, and we lived off the land in the forest. We weren’t rich like your parents were, and made do with what we had.”

“Hey,” Emma protested, feeling the need to defend her mother and father. “My parents didn’t have the easiest lives either. They both lived like your family did at one point in their lives.”

“True,” he agreed, working to shape the hat once again. “But you have to admit if we were still living in the Enchanted Forest today, you’d be living life as a princess most likely married to another kingdom’s prince, and I’d still be in the forest, selling mushrooms to make a living.”

Emma refused to acknowledge the truth of Jefferson’s blunt statement. “It doesn’t matter anyway, because I didn’t grow up a princess in a castle. I grew up in the foster system, and then on the streets for a long time. My life wasn’t a picnic, you know.”

Jefferson didn’t respond to her confession of her past to him. He had learned quite a bit about the savior after she arrived in Storybrooke. Spying on people through telescopes wasn’t the only way he learned about people. Thankfully, while Regina had somehow managed to control the décor of his mansion, she didn’t control the advancement of technology, so he had learned about the internet and other useful technologies thanks to his cursed wealth. He had done numerous background searches on Emma soon after she had arrived, and probably knew as much about her as Regina and Sidney Glass did.

She was quiet for a long while, simply watching him construct the top hat. Then she asked out of the blue, “Why top hats?”

“What?” He said, giving her a bemused look.

“Why always make top hats for your magic hat? Why not try making a bowler or Stetson?” She pondered, quirking her head. 

Jefferson looked down at the fairly standard top hat he was making. “Umm, I don’t know? Tradition maybe? Most magicians use top hats for magic? They look more distinguished?”

“If we get this one to work, maybe we should try another type of hat,” she mused, looking thoughtful.

“Why on earth would I need another hat?” He demanded, not sure where she was going with her line of thought.

“Well, I’d think having a spare would be helpful,” she muttered. “Considering Regina stole your first one.”

Jefferson snorted at her comment. “Fat lot of good it would have been to have a second hat back then, considering I was stuck in Wonderland and the spare would have been left in the Enchanted Forest.”

“Good point,” she conceded, still looking thoughtful. She watched him attach the brim to the hat. “But if you could have a spare, would you want one?”

“I suppose,” he said, not looking up from his work. “Still wouldn’t help if I was stuck ever again.”

Emma was silent, deep in thought. Slowly, she asked tentatively, “Do you think we could add some sort of magic that would call the hat to you if you needed it?”

Jefferson dropped what he was doing and looked at her. “What do you mean?”

Emma looked distinctly uncomfortable about what she was about to say. “I don’t like the idea of anyone, not just you, being stranded in some other place without a way to get home.”

“But the hat has specific rules, Emma,” he patiently explained. “One goes in, one must come out, etcetera, etcetera. That’s why I was stuck in Wonderland in the first place. Regina tricked me when she and I went in together, never telling me she was going to rescue her father and leave me behind.”

“But who wrote those rules? The hat? I don’t think so,” she continued stubbornly. “Whoever spelled your hat the first time must have made that condition.”

“Honestly Emma,” he admitted, going back to work on the hat. “I’ve never really thought about any of this. I just followed the hat’s rules.”

“Well, the hat’s rules are stupid,” she muttered, and wandered away from the table. “I’m going to check on the kids for a bit.”

“That’s fine,” he said, working diligently on finishing. “I should have this finished up in a half hour or so.”

He heard, rather than saw the door shut to the room. He continued in silence trying to finish the hat as quickly as possible, however, Emma’s questions were running through his head. Why couldn’t the hat’s rules change with whomever made the enchantment on it? It would have been damned helpful not to have the same number in, same number out rule gone from his portal traveling.

A half hour later, he was placing the final stitch in the silk lining of his new hat. He’d been able to work much faster on the hat once Emma had left him, but he missed her silly questions. He was surprised at how much he enjoyed talking with Emma today, and wished he could look forward to other days like this again. He was about to go look for Emma, when the door to the room opened and she reappeared.

“Done?” she asked, nodding towards the hat in front of him.

“Just finished,” he said, holding out the hat to her. Tentatively she took it from him.

“What should I do?” she asked, looking up at him. “Everything I’ve done with magic so far has been by accident.”

“Well, earlier you mentioned love as a factor,” he began, trying to rationalize for her what she should do. “And you’ve mentioned touch, so maybe you should think about the hat and how it could have helped you reach Henry?”

She nodded and took the hat in both hands, bowing her head over it. For the next few minutes, she stared intently into it, yet nothing happened. “Should something be happening?”

“I don’t know,” he admitted, holding out a hand for his hat. He held it for a moment, but couldn’t sense any magic within it. Looking up at her, he finally said, “Emma, I don’t think this is going to work.”

Emma stepped closer and grabbed the hat as well, placing her hands next to his. Suddenly, a warm glow started to emanate from their hands where they touched. “Jefferson,” she gasped.

He grinned at her and threaded his fingers through hers, yet still managing to hold the hat between them. The glow grew even brighter. “Emma, I think we may have done it! Think about your experience with the hat and I’ll do the same.”

Emma grinned back at him, closing her eyes. “I really hope we can make this hat work better than the last.”

Jefferson thought about all the problems the hat’s rules had caused, and fervently hoped they could be changed. Suddenly he sensed a portal beginning to open from within the hat. “Emma let go!” he shouted, the winding starting to pick up within the room.

They both dropped the hat to the floor, and Jefferson grabbed her arm to pull her back from the portal opening. He looked at her, and asked, “Want to go for a quick trip?”

“Uh, last time I saw one of these, I was trapped in the Enchanted Forest with ogres and giants,” she shouted back, looking at the portal warily.

“This will only open to the realm room,” he said, giving her a hopeful look. “We can just pop down for a quick look and come back.”

“Are you sure we’ll be safe?” She asked, searching his face for something.

“I’m positive,” he replied, looking confident.

“Okay,” she said. “What do we do?”

Linking his arm through hers, he said, “Jump!” and together, they jumped into the portal.

A few minutes later, Jefferson found himself in a place he hadn’t seen in decades. “A lot has changed,” he commented.

Emma looked around the vast room of doors in awe. “Do all these doors lead to…”

“Each door leads to a different land,” he answered, itching to open one and go exploring. But neither he nor Emma could go anywhere today.

“Oh, wow,” she breathed, going to walk around to look at a few. She stopped by a green curtained door. “Does this go to where I think it does?”

Jefferson nodded, and watched her continue on. She stopped short at a blue door with a sign that said, Police Telephone, Free for Public Use. “This goes to the TARDIS? The Doctor’s real?”

“You’ve watched Doctor Who,” he asked, amused. Emma didn’t really seem the type to enjoy science fiction.

“I used to watch a lot of PBS as a kid,” she admitted. “Have you met him?”

“A few times,” Jefferson said, his face pulling up in a grimace. “He doesn’t like portal jumpers much. Time Lords tend to get fussy when you mess with different realities.”

“Okay, I’m going to sound like Henry, but that is so cool,” she gushed, walking back to him.

“Emma, we should probably return now. While I can manipulate time to a certain extent, it’s been a while and I really don’t want to chance being gone too long,” Jefferson said, sad he had to interrupt her discovery. He was delighted she seemed as excited about exploring as he was.

“Is it bad I really want to go exploring right now?” she asked wistfully, looking longingly at the blue door. “I always wanted to run away with the Doctor, you know?”

“We could come back, Emma,” he said softly, taking her hand and looking at her. “We could even bring Henry and Grace with us. Go and visit Hogwarts or something.”

“Henry would love it,” she smiled. “But you’re right, we need to get back.”

Jefferson took her arm and called on the hat’s magic. Another portal opened and together they jumped, finding themselves back in the hat room, which looked a little worse for wear after the portal openings. Looking around the messed up room, Jefferson mused, “Probably shouldn’t have tried this here.”

Suddenly the door to the room burst open and Henry and Grace ran in. “What happened?” Henry cried, looking around at the disheveled room.

“Your mom got another hat to work,” Jefferson said, smiling at the two children.

“Cool!” Henry exclaimed and gave Grace, both of them turning pleading faces to Jefferson and Emma. “Can we try it now?”

“Not today,” Emma replied, walking over to Henry. “We need to get going if we want to make it home in time to meet your grandparents.”

“Emma’s right,” Jefferson agreed, walking over to give Grace a hug. “Now that we have another hat, we can come and go as we please.”

“But only with adult supervision,” Emma warned, knowing exactly what antics her son could get up to. She didn’t want either Grace or Henry to get ideas about traveling without Jefferson. “Absolutely no using the hat without an adult.”

“Okay,” the two children agreed sadly.

Jefferson looked at the two children and said, “Grace, why don’t you go with Henry to gather up his things.” Grace nodded, and then led Henry out of the room.

“Jefferson,” Emma said softly, grasping his arm lightly. He looked at her in surprise. “You’re not planning to leave with Grace, are you?”

For the longest time, getting a hat to work was his main priority in live so he and Grace to live their old life together, but now, he could see the benefits of staying here in Storybrooke. “No.”

“No?” she asked.

“No, Emma,” Jefferson said confidently. “I think I find Storybrooke quite appealing.”

Emma smiled at him. “I’m glad you think so. I’d hate for you to leave.”

“Really, Sheriff Swan?” He asked, his eyebrow raising.

“I’ve just gained a new friend,” she said, giving his arm as squeeze. “And I don’t want to lose him.”

“Don’t worry, Emma,” he replied. “I’m here to stay.”


End file.
